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I <3 New York

I don’t have much in the way of foodie pictures from yesterday. Bobby and I got a quick lunch from a street vendor… Last time I lived in New York we called this “street meat”, but I don’t know if that’s a common nickname.

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Street meat is actually really good. Yesterday I got a chicken kebab ($3) which came with some veggies on the kebab. Bobby got the chicken and rice dish ($5), which comes with some salad too. We both shared a little.

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It’s probably not the best thing for you, but it’s not the worst. The meat is fresh and you watch the guy cook it right in front of you. Ours were not very oily and honestly – pretty yummy. I’d never gotten the kebab before; usually I go for a chicken gyro on a pita (lunch on Wednesday, actually). This is from the place next to Bloomingdale’s on 59th Street, but I’ve gone to the one outside of JPMorgan on 45th (ish?) and also one on the lower west side – maybe around 26th and 7th Ave?

Yesterday I discovered the amazing world of laundry delivery services. I called up Jeffrey’s Cleaners around 11:45am. He came and got my clothes in less than 15 minutes. After we spent the day walking around, we called him again around 6:15pm to inquire about our clothes (I didn’t really know the process) – again, he delivered them in about 15 minutes. They were perfectly pressed and smelled fresh and clean. They were folded better than I could ever fold them (and I worked at Gap!). And it was cheap! We tipped him but I’m not sure if people normally do; he seemed surprised when we said, “keep the change.”

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Last night we went out to see The Blind Side, which was so so good. Usually, I hate movies. I fall asleep during them. I can’t follow the plot. I get distracted. This movie was completely different. It had Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, and Kathy Bates – all great. The story was  touching and captivating. I didn’t look at my watch once. What made it even better was the fact that it was based on a true story. Go see it!

Another thing I did yesterday was scope out grocery stores. Then I christened our apartment with 2 nice squash – a butternut and a kabocha.

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Tonight is my high school reunion… I have to figure out what to wear. Any ideas?

Is there something unique or special about where you live? Or habits that people in your area all seem to have? (Like laundry service – which I now love – or a specialty food dish, or a way of dressing.)

OR – what was the last good movie you saw?

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Thanksgiving Recap

Before the recap – look what I did!

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I got a milk frother at the Foodbuzz Festival the other week and I finally used it… for coffee. Did you know you can froth coffee? I did not. It’s really cool. Unfortunately this is decaf instant coffee courtesy of Nescafe, but the froth made it better.

Yesterday Bobby and I (and we brought our friend, Justin) spent the day in New Jersey with my family. My Grammie hosts Thanksgiving every year and I was really excited and happy to see her – I hadn’t seen her since January!

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Everybody futzed around in the kitchen for a while (Mom, Grammie, Dad, Bobby)…

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More futzing (Justin, Uncle Rudy, Aunt Mattie)…

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Playing with cameras (Rob, my brother)…

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Then it was time for the food. Somehow we ended up with 3 Tofurkeys (!), but it was actually the perfect amount. They were cooked with onions (from the garden), carrots (from the garden), and potatoes (not sure – probably from the garden). We also had sparkling cider (I opted for sparkling wine instead). Everyone in my family (grandparents included) loves Tofurkey.

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Dinner is served! (Julia – sister, Rob, Dad, Justin) This was actually lunch; we ate around 1:30 or 2pm.

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There was real turkey too, of course. A little dry, but remedied with lots of delicious (vegan) dressing.

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Creamy chestnuts were great – always a favorite of mine.

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My mom’s sweet potato pie (from the Moosewood cookbook) stole the show. It had pecans and a cheddar-poppyseed crust.

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I didn’t get a picture, but there was also a bowl of pureed squash that I attacked without mercy. Grammie made it – must get the recipe from her. She wasn’t sure what kind of squash she used; it was bright orange (but not kabocha, butternut, buttercup – possibly hubbard).

Other things that were unpictured: Brussels sprouts, stuffing (one vegan and one from the turkey), cucumber salad thing, pickled beets, … I think that was it.

Dessert was impossible pumpkin pie, apple pie, and an apple-pecan dish. Served with whipped cream.
I actually skipped out on dessert in the afternoon (though I did have a generous bowl of whipped cream – real cream) but I brought home leftovers and had them last night with supper (more leftovers).

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I think my favorite was the apple pie; the apple-pecan thing was amazing but a little bit sweet for me. And the pumpkin was pretty delicious as well… I just have a fondness for apples.

I didn’t do any Black Friday craziness today, but I’ll probably go out for a walk in a little bit and maybe do some yoga later.

How was your Thanksgiving?

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Thanks!

I’m thankful for a lot of things. Here are just a few of them…

  • Bobby – 4 years on December 3rd (!) and getting married soon (thanks for all the feedback on this picture)
  • Our family
  • Our cats (Couscous and Bo)
  • Almost 2 years of blogging (here’s my first post)
  • My friends (new and old)
  • My new job
  • The future
  • Salad and frozen yogurt (like Bekah)
  • Kabocha (haven’t had any in a while though! must get on that)
  • Cupcakes from Crumbs (from my boss’s wife)
  • Grits for breakfast (instant! not actually from Metro Cafe; their container was handy though)
  • Yoga!
  • Lots of other things that I’m not thinking of right now 😛

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Happy Thanksgiving! What are you thankful for?

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Family Yums & Workouts

I’m a bit busy, but here are some yums that I had with my family last week…

07 pear salad

My mom made a wonderful salad with pears, blue cheese crumbles, walnuts, white onions, and cranberries (and maybe something else? Mom?). She topped it with a homemade vinaigrette salad dressing. She left the blue cheese crumbles on the side for those who wanted to be vegan.

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That same night she made a creamy leek soup (vegan, amazingly enough). It was delicious. I think she used almond milk. There was definitely dill in there too.

09 leek soup

My dad made his signature waffles for breakfast. We had them with butter and syrup.

10 waffles

My dad also made French toast. Also topped with butter and syrup.

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Does your family have any signature dishes?

Workouts of the week:

  • Monday: run in the morning (1.75 miles); walk home (2 miles)
  • Tuesday: yoga in the morning (25 minutes on my own); walk @ lunch (1 mile); walk home (2 miles)
  • Wednesday (today) so far: kendell hogan’s bootcamp calorie burn (30 minutes, free!)
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First Day Of Work

Remember that good news I mentioned the other day? Or maybe you wondered why I suddenly moved into Manhattan this weekend? I started my new job today. I’m a kind of marketing analyst for a small startup. So far – awesome.

This morning I woke up jittery so I went out for a jog. I did about 1.75 miles (?). When I got back I picked up my breakfast from Metro Cafe – a 12 ounce oatmeal made with skim milk + cinnamon, banana, and blueberries.

04 oatmeal

I finished it, but it wasn’t very good. I’m not getting it again. What the what Metro Cafe? I’ll stick with your bagels. Tomorrow’s breakfast is going to be instant grits from a hotel we stayed at on the road trip. Hehehe.

After a long day at work I opted for the hot foods bar at a random deli on my way home (I walked; about 1.5 miles or so). I met up with Bobby in the middle. (He got pizza.) I dumped honey mustard dressing on this.

05 salad bar

This meal was kind of oily but really good. I had grilled chicken, random prepared salads (something with broccoli, one with mushrooms, a sealeg salad, tomatoes, etc…), a sweet potato (I think), and some other things that I can’t remember right now.

Dessert was rice with honey mustard dressing (a little random) and these carob chips that my sister gave me. Um… more than pictured. I might still be eating them now.

06 carob chips

I’m off to snuggle and get some rest before work tomorrow. I apologize for the lack of commenting as of late; I’m sorry to say it’s going to continue. I’m still reading of course.

What was your favorite job?